Peter Pauper Press Essentials Dot Matrix Notebook Review (Including Pen Test)
Another affordable dot grid notebook… But are you better off spending extra? Let’s see how the quality of the Peter Pauper Press notebook compares to more expensive options.
Quick facts
- Size: A5 (comes in an A4 page size version too)
- 192 pages
- Hardcover
- Sewn Binding
- 5mm dot grid
- No page numbers
- Cream paper (100 GSM)
- 1 Ribbon bookmark
- No pre-printed index or contents pages
Price: $13 USD on Amazon
Let’s take a closer look!
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The Cover
The usual hardcover that most sewn bound notebooks have – comes in black only 🙁
Approx. 0.75″ thick
The paper is cream / ivory.
5mm dot grid.
The dots are slightly bigger than some of the other dot grid notebooks I’ve seen and are a dark grey. If you’ve been looking for a notebook with a bolder dot grid this notebook could be an option for you.
There are no dots close to the edge of the page so no risk of any dots getting cut off due to mis-print when the notebook is made. The notebook also doesn’t skip a dot on the rounded corners. I’ve seen some notebooks skip the far right dot in the last row due to the rounded edges of the page which is really annoying when ruling up spreads.
Pen Testing
I tried all of the usual ballpoint, gel and fine tip pens. There was show through on the back side of the page for all of them, The least show through was, as is almost always the case, ballpoint pens.
Pros of the Notebook
- Portable size
- Affordable
- Readily available on Amazon and other online retailers
- Wide border between the dot grid and the edge of the page (ruler is less likely to slip off the page when ruling spreads and no dots are miss-printed / cut off on the egdes)
Cons of the Notebook
- No page numbers
- Yellow / cream pages
- Boring cover (black only, no other color options)
- No index page or any other pre-printed pages
Would I use this notebook?
No. The pages are cream / yellow, there’s no page numbers and it has a boring (black only) cover. All 3 are things I strongly dislike in a dot grid notebook!
Compared to the other dot grid notebooks I’ve reviewed, what you get for the price, isn’t very good value. I’d rather spend $5 more and get something with better paper, page numbers and different cover color options.
Some dot grid notebooks that are better:
- Clever Fox (cheaper than this notebook, different cover colors and really good paper quality – one of my all time favorite dot grid notebooks)
- Bullet Journal notebooks with the best paper (my top 7)
- Dingbats (super smooth paper)
- 10 Cheap bullet journal notebooks (that cost less than $15 USD or less)
- Vivid Scribbles Dot Grid Notebook (bleedproof 140GSM paper!)
- Jumping Fox Designs Dot Grid Notebook (slight glitter effect on the cover and foil edges)
Bullet Journaling Tips:
- 7 Bullet Journal Supplies I Don’t Use
- 10 Bullet Journal weekly layouts if you want to keep work and personal in the same spread
- The best time saving tool for bullet journaling (Ink by Jeng Row & Column Stencil)
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Great Review, clear succinct and useful. I have been reading your reviews for some time and like that some of your preferences come through but you are open. I too would say no to no page numbers but totally cool with a stylish black option. Keep them coming – really useful for a girl tucked away in New Zealand.
Hi Felicty,
Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. Glad you find my reviews helpful 🙂
Let me know if there are any planners or notebooks you’d like me to do a review of (or anything else you’d like to see on the blog)